


In Season

by Maverick



Category: Hit the Floor (TV)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-07
Updated: 2016-12-07
Packaged: 2018-09-06 21:12:01
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,408
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8769484
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Maverick/pseuds/Maverick
Summary: Three time stamps of Jude and Zero's relationship before, during and after Season 3.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [atlanticslide](https://archiveofourown.org/users/atlanticslide/gifts).



> Atlanticslide,
> 
> I hope you have as much fun reading this as I had writing it. As I just told my beta, I love these stupid boys SO MUCH. So thanks for giving me the opportunity to spend some quality time with them. I hope this makes your yule a little more merry and bright. 
> 
> Thanks to my beta for not only her stellar work, but also sucking me into this fandom as well. 
> 
> Title taken from this quote:
> 
> _Love: A fruit always in season._
> 
> \- Mother Teresa

_

Before

_

Zero walked to the conference room at the Arena with his usual swagger. He hadn’t talked to Jude since the night of the championship two weeks earlier. He’d given Jude space, but two weeks had to be enough time for the other man to calm down. Plus two championships had to mean he’d finally be out of endorsement purgatory, so they had lots of business to conduct. And if that business led them to getting hot and sweaty together, Zero wasn’t going to complain. He opened the door and stopped just before crossing the threshold. “Who the hell are you?”

The other guy extended his hand out as Zero entered the room. “Name’s Lucas. I’m your new agent.”

Fuck that shit. “Jude’s my agent.”

The new guy perched his hip against the end of the table. “Not as of today, he isn’t.”

“Why’s that?” Fuck, Jude had been serious about not settling for percentages. Zero hadn’t seen that coming and he really should have. Jude didn’t say things he didn’t mean.

“With his daddy-o getting arrested, he asked management to take a leave of absence.”

Zero leaned back against the closed door, keeping his face neutral. There was no way he was going to let this SOB know how much he was disappointed by Jude’s decision. “And how’d you get the job?”

Lucas took a seat at the table and gestured for Zero to join him.

Zero stayed where he was and waited for Lucas to respond.

“Well, it was supposed to be my job in the first place until you made that stink and had the company promote Jude from coffee boy to full-fledged agent.”

Zero crossed his arms at his chest. This guy wasn’t making any points by trashing Jude to him. “Jude made all the deals, why shouldn’t he get the title?”

Lucas smirked like Zero was just some dumb baller who might have some talent but no brains. “Does that mean if I make you enough money there’ll be a Porsche in it for me too?”

Not a chance in hell. Zero had this guy’s number. He knew that most agents were like this slick asshole, just in it for the bucks. Fuck, Jude had him spoiled. He’d forgotten how exhausting it was to pretend he needed someone else to make his decisions for him. Not that he’d let this guy know that. “We’ll see how you do rehabbing my image. Then we’ll talk.”

“I look forward to it.”

“You never answered my question.” And Zero really hated that deflection habit of most people on the business side of ball. “How’d you get the job now?”

“Actually I owe that to Jude. He told management that I was the only one who could keep both you and Derek in line.”

“Why’s that?”

“He said I was all about keeping business, business, whatever that means.”

Zero knew what Jude meant even if this new guy didn’t. From day one, he and Jude had been more than agent and client. It sucked to lose that.

Lucas gestured for him to come to the table again. “Speaking of business, what do you say we use that bad boy image of yours to make some bank?”

Zero nodded and reluctantly sat down at the table. He’d rehab his image first. Jude would just have to wait.

~*~*~*~

It wasn’t like Zero couldn’t get laid. Literally with a snap of his fingers, he could have some hot looking girl or guy sucking his dick and thanking him for the privilege. It’s just that none of those people were Jude. Sure, he’d hooked up a few times in the four months since he’d seen Jude, but something was always missing.

Zero had always known that Jude was more than just a roll in the hay. He was willing to admit he missed Jude’s enthusiasm in the bedroom, where Jude gave as good as he got, but he missed their friendship even more. He missed hanging out at Jude’s place, scheming together over take out as they plotted Zero’s next move. He missed having a partner in the business side of basketball. Sure Lucas could schmooze with the best of them, but Zero wouldn’t be caught dead sharing his ideas with him.

It was beyond time to remind Jude of what a good team they made. They’d gotten hot and heavy thanks to a photo shoot, so why not remind Jude of what he’d been missing. The more Zero thought about it, the more he liked the idea. Get Jude to come to his underwear shoot and offer him his job back. With the right incentive, he was sure he could get Jude to join Team Zero again.

_

During

_

Zero’d been quiet the entire ride back from their visit to his childhood house. It was just as bad as Jude had been expecting, so he could understand that Zero needed time to process. They hadn’t talked about what happened to Leo and Carla, but Jude was going to look into that. And if they were still alive, he was going to do his best to ruin their miserable lives. That part was easy. The hard part would be helping to steer Zero into finding his sister. He was so focused on how to make that happen that Zero’s mouth on his as soon as they crossed the threshold of the apartment came as a bit of a shock at first.

Zero had him pushed up against the back of the door, his hand down Jude’s pants before Jude even had the time to twist the lock. It was clumsy and frantic and very reminiscent of their first time together, when Zero kissed him and wouldn’t let him leave for the party. But even as Zero dropped to his knees in front of Jude and was fully focused on his cock, Jude understood that this was about comfort for Zero, about the connection they had together. He gently put his hands on Zero’s shoulders and pulled him up into a hug. “Hey, let’s take this into our bedroom, yeah?”

Zero just nodded and let Jude lead the way.

After they’d cleaned up and settled back on the bed, both stretched out on their respective sides, Zero finally spoke. “Thanks for that,” Zero said not meeting Jude’s eyes.

Jude turned his head and cocked his eyebrow pretty sure Zero wasn’t talking about the sex. “For what?”

Zero gave him a quick look and then went back to staring at the ceiling. “Not judging me for how I lost control back there.”

Jude rolled over until his was straddling Zero’s waist, holding up his index finger. “Well one, I kinda egged you into it.” He brought up a second finger. “Two, I know you Zero,” Jude paused, looking down at Zero and stopped talking until Zero looked back at him. “I know you, Gideon.”

Zero’s eyes went soft as they always did when Jude used his real name. He closed them as Jude stroked his thumb across his jaw. Jude could see that Zero’s emotions were still just a little too raw for his comfort.

He leaned down and nuzzled behind Zero’s ear, whispering into it. “You don’t have to hide from me. There’s nothing you could do or say that would make me leave. Remember we’re in it together.”

Zero turned his head to catch Jude’s lips with his own. “Thank you,” Zero said again, but this time meeting Jude’s eyes with his own.

They were both still a little too wired to sleep, so Jude wasn’t surprised when Zero started asking questions about his childhood. “What was it like for you growing up?”

Jude rolled to his side and rested his head on Zero’s bicep. He knew that Zero needed an even playing field so he didn’t mind sharing his own past. “Spent a lot of time alone. My mom worked two jobs and it was pretty much just the two of us for most of my childhood.”

Zero shifted so they were facing each other, sharing the same pillow. “What about Oscar?”

“He wasn’t a part of my life. My mom made some sort of deal with him so he’d leave us alone. Or that’s what I thought.”

“She didn’t?” 

Jude tried to relax his face as Zero ran his thumb back and forth across the wrinkles on his forehead. Jude knew it was Zero’s silent way of reminding him of the negative effects Oscar had on him. 

Jude shut his eyes and let out a deep breath. “After all this quality time I’ve spent with Oscar Kinkade lately, I’m pretty sure his leaving us alone had very little to do with my mom and everything to do with the fact that he simply didn’t give a fuck that he had a son. I was an inconvenience.”

“Your mom’s still alive, right?”

Jude nodded. “She is. I went back east to visit her for a while after the championship. I thought about moving back there.”

Zero made a face at that. “I’m really glad you didn’t.”

Jude was too. But he figured he owed Zero a different kind of honesty. “I’m pretty sure, she is too.”

It was Zero’s turn to raise an eyebrow.

“She did her best not to say, ‘I told you so’ when I told her about Oscar disowning me. She didn’t entirely succeed though.”

“That’s harsh.”

Jude shrugged. “I know she loves me. I know she sacrificed a lot to keep me safe. I just think I turned out a bit too much like Oscar for her comfort.”

“You are nothing like Oscar,” Zero said, his tone brooking no argument.

Jude had to kiss him for that. “Thanks, but I am like him in some ways. I mean I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t straight up murder someone, but I can be single minded, unrelenting and even unethical when it suits me.”

Zero nuzzled behind Jude’s ear. “You say that like those are bad things.”

Jude snorted. “Most people would think so.”

“Most people are sheep.”

Jude couldn’t argue with that. “I’m okay with who I am now. Thanks in part to you.”

Zero pressed his forehead to Jude’s. “Same. And that’s why we make an unstoppable team.”

Jude let Zero feel more than see his smile. “We are. Not let’s get some sleep. I have a feeling I’m going to be putting out fires all day tomorrow.”

_

After

_

Zero walked into the bedroom after his run to find Jude showered and getting dressed. It was a free Saturday so he was surprised to see Jude in an unbuttoned dress shirt and his boxers, the rest of his suit spread out on their bed. “Where you going?”

Jude stopped buttoning up his shirt and leaned over to give Zero a kiss. “Brunch with Lionel”

Zero perched his hip against the corner of the dresser and met Jude’s eyes in the mirror, his face awash in amusement. “Another lesson in all things gay?”

Jude let out a breath. “Yeah, probably. I agreed to it because brunch seemed less horrific than another discussion about bears, otters and seals.”

“I’d be careful,” Zero said, his voice doing nothing to hide the humor behind his words. “Lionel strikes me as the type who could slip more of that conversation in somewhere between her mimosa and frittata. Or you know, maybe this time something about the pros and cons of graduated butt plugs.”

“You are as bad as her,” Jude said as his knocked his shoulder against Zero’s. “And you promised not to laugh.”

Zero threw his arm around Jude’s shoulder and ruffled his still wet hair. He held up his index finger as they both watched in the mirror. “One, I made that promise when your mouth was on my dick. I can’t be expected to keep it.” He turned so that he was leaning back against the dresser and pulled Jude between the V of his legs, his hands now loose on Jude’s hips. “Plus, you’ve manipulated, outwitted and double-crossed some of the most powerful people in the sports business and yet I found you catatonic on our couch because Lionel decided to enlighten you on various gay body types. You’ve got to admit, that’s pretty damn funny.”

Jude shuddered. “There was a PowerPoint with naked pictures and a quiz at the end.”

Zero smiled wide. “And yet, you agreed to brunch.”

Jude shrugged his shoulders. “What can I say, I’m a sucker for booze and pancakes. Although instead of laughing at me, you should be grateful my preferred gay body type is apparently jock.”

“So I don’t have to worry about you leaving me for a bear?” Zero asked, sweeping his thumbs underneath the waistband of Jude’s boxers. This time when Jude shivered, Zero was pretty sure it wasn’t in horror.

Jude made a face like he was considering it. “Not a bear. Maybe a wolf?”

Zero snorted. “And here I was going to offer to go to brunch with you.”

Hooking his arms around Zero’s neck, Jude smiled at him. “I’d like that.”

“You know Lionel’s going to give you grief about you being afraid to face her by yourself.”

Jude nodded. “Worth it to spend time with my two favorite people.”

Sometimes Jude’s sincerity still took Zero’s breath away. He smiled and leaned in to brush a kiss against Jude’s temple. “Give me 10 minutes to shower and get dressed.”

Jude lowered his arms and pulled Zero flush against him. He slid his hands down the back of Zero’s running shorts and grabbed his ass. “You want some help with that?”

Zero canted his hips forward to brush his groin against Jude’s. “Always, but you realize that’s going to make us late.”

Jude nodded and pulled away, smiling. ”Fashionably late. Just one of the ways I’ve already mastered being gay.” He held out his hand to Zero. “Come on stupid. Let me show you another.”

Zero took Jude’s hand, laughing all the way to the shower. At Derek’s wedding, he’d repeated Jude’s vow back to him. And he meant it. Jude was the greatest thing that ever happened to him. But even better than that, he was the one constant that Zero could always rely on. Sure, he still had a few more good years of ball in front of him, but it didn’t matter as much anymore. He had Jude by his side and that was everything.


End file.
